The Forbidden Self: Symbolic Incest and the Journey Within

Perkins, John

The message of this book by a Jungian psychotherapist is that the more we are alone, that is, "all one" within, "the greater will be our solidarity with all our fellow human beings on the outside" (p. 20). He bases the book on the mythical tale of Gregorious, a solitary hermit. He also deals with incest, which when directed inward, can symbolize the integration of personality, but when lived outwardly, as so prevalent today, it is a devasting violation of the Self. Perkins shows how, by developing the contrasexual image within ourselves, we can balance "masculine and feminine polarity, to form a wholeness of life and experience" (p. 10) that is lived consciously as never before.